Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Answerables is a wonderful new innovative site/game that is perfect for Game Based Learning (or more accurate Game Based Learning meets Learning Management System). It reminds me of Second Life but geared more toward kids w/ their fantasy/SciFi environment. The game takes place in the 3D virtual world of Answerables on a planet called Proxima, where the native Ansibles (students) encounter an alien race.

What makes this so great for education that is the safe/COPPA compliant environment that Answerables provides. This is an ideal place for students to collaborate w/ others and develop their social learning skills. Answerables provides windows (i.e. Second Life) to view the web, go on quests, etc. The student dashboard allows students to track their quests, notifications, events, PODS (Personal Online Development Spaces), and more.

Educators can create a lesson/POD (manage permissions), create webquests, internet scave
nger hunts, host live events, and best of all "Gamify" their lesson. This is great for introducing a new concept, guided/differentiated instruction, and even "Flipping" a classroom. Also, teachers (parents too) can track/monitor student progress, share and view resources by collaborating w/ other educators, and even setup tutoring courses where they set their own rate.

Monday, June 29, 2015

Folders: Now you can organize student work in to folders. You can set up colored folders for subject areas or learning objectives, and choose whether students self select folders when adding items or teachers do it as part of item approval. Folders are visible to teachers, students and parents. You can browse work by folder across your class or for a particular student.

Teacher Flags: Teachers (and co-teachers) can flag items to review later -- at a parent teacher conference, with a student, or however you'd like. Which items have been flagged are only visible to class teachers and co-teachers.

PDF Documents: Now you can add PDFs to Seesaw journals. You can import PDFs from many other iOS apps (like Pages, Numbers, Keynote, Google Drive, Book Creator) using the iOS share extension / open in feature. Just tap share in those apps and select Seesaw.

Tag Everyone: Want to add a class photo to Seesaw journals, or send a quick note to all parents in your class? Now you can add an item to all student journals with a single tap.

Ignite Teaching is an excellent free iPad app for creating multimedia presentations/projects that I just found out about from iPad Apps 4 Schools. Educators are using Ignite Teaching for Project Based Learning by assigning students projects through Ignite Teaching's educational portal. The way this work is an educator invites a student to their project/assignment through a unique code. Once the student or group signs up they can then create multimedia presentations that contain: text, images, videos, and more.

Sunday, June 28, 2015

Buncee the amazing learning tool (web/iOS app) has just released a new (beta) web interface for the user's creation experience. This whole new sleek design makes it even easier to create stunning presentations, digital stories, announcements, greetings, and more, through the click of a button and dragging & dragging/dropping.

Educators around the world are using Buncee for Project Based Learning, digital storytelling, to "flip" their classroom, and in many more ways. Now it is even easier then before to integrate Buncee into the classroom and users should find the latest updates to really enhance their Buncee experience.

Top 10 New Creation Canvas Features...

Wider Canvas - easier on the eyes all in one screen

Universal Search - one keyword search will bring up images, videos, stickers, and more

Add or upload multiple items at once - batch uploads makes it easier and speeds up a user's workflow

Draw directly on your digital canvas/buncee

Duplicate slides - a major time saver when needing to keep the same formula throughout the presentation

Friday, June 26, 2015

EDpuzzle is vastly becoming one of the premiere web/iOS tools around for learning in the classroom. This is fantastic free tool for editing a video, cropping, adding quizzes/polls, narration, etc. then embedding into site/blog. It is being used to flip a classroom or lesson, Project Based Learning, grading/assessing, and even for differentiating instruction. The educational portal allows students to sign-up w/out needing an email account and lets educators track student progress in real-time.

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Thursday, June 25, 2015

Matific is a great site for finding educational resources for Math in grades K-6th. These resources include videos, worksheets, activities, and more w/ an educational portal that allows educators to track student progress. Also, teachers are using this to assess students performance in Math and differentiate instruction. There is even a free mobile (iOS/Android) app for El Ed math games.

Lumio is a wonderful site/company for online Math Resources & mobile games. There are 7 easy to use fun iOS games that focus on a wide variety of Math skills such as: telling time, multiplication, decimals, etc. These games are designed for students 5-11 yrs, aligned to Common Core Standards, and generate detailed reports. This is an ideal way to introduce Game Based Learning to the classroom as well as work in a BYOD or 1:1 environment.

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Monster Math is an excellent iOS app/game for learning basic Math skills (i.e. addition, multiplication, etc.). This is done through an engaging and fun game, as a student helps Maxx solve Math problems to find his friend Dextra. Best of all, is the detailed reporting that allows

parents/teachers to track student's progress. Also, Monster Math adjusts skill level based on a user's performance and differentiates instruction accordingly. Finally, Monster Math has lots of replay value as there are lots of levels and worlds to explore, and is aligned to Common Core Standards.

I highly recommend checking out Monster Math by clicking here!!!
For a more detailed review check out Edshelf.
Click here for Kelly Tenkely's excellent review!!

FlipQuiz is an excellent new site for creating Jeopardy style board game quizzes. Everything is very user friendly and allows users to create a game through the use of a template or search through previously created quizzes/games. Also, a user can share games via a link or through social media and there is even a handy built in timer/stopwatch when answering a question.

Tuesday, June 23, 2015

BoomWriter is one of my favorite sites that I've posted about many times before for integrating technology into a classroom. This innovative site is ideal for grades 3rd-8th for Reading & Writing. BoomWriter allows students through a collaborative process create a digital book/story chapter by chapter.

The way this works is a teacher creates a class/students (no student email is required) and then assigns them a story starter (or creates their own). Each student then types the next chapter. The students then vote on which chapter should be included in the book/story, and this process goes on and on until the book is completed. Finally, once this is done their story can then be published and an actual copy of the book can be ordered. Right now for every first time class they receive 1 free book (shipping included)!!

BoomWriter is ideal for Project Based Learning and excellent for education and abides by CIPA compliance making it a 100% safe in an enclosed environment.

JellyBean Scoop is an interesting new site that I just found out about from Richard Byrne's excellent blog. This is a great site/app for finding interesting "true" stories divided into 4 reading levels. Each story contains audio files, comprehension tests, vocabulary/sentence building practice, and read aloud functions.

Also, there is a JellyBean Writer tool which helps students create picture or text books by providing templates. These books are easy to create and a user can upload photos from their computer. It can be used for any subject and ideal for El Ed students.

Finally, there are JellyBean Scoop Brain Games that focus on a wide variety of skills such as: Math, Language, Vocabulary, and more.

Monday, June 22, 2015

Modern Chalkboard is a wonderful new free site for finding SMART board resources. This is a great place to find interactive lessons on a wide variety of subjects such as: Math, Grammar, Science, Social Studies, and more Also, this is a nice place to find other resources such as links and help files.

PlayKids free mobile (iOS/Android) is a wonderful app for finding educational cartoons, games, activities, and more. These activities are designed for young learners and contain: shapes, drawing, matching, etc etc. Best of all, a parent/guardian can create a playlist for what videos a child can view as well as get detailed progress reports emailed to them.

Saturday, June 20, 2015

Help Teaching is an excellent site for educators, parents, and others looking for educational resources such as quiz/test creators, online assessments, or worksheets/printables. These printables are for K-12 and cover a wide range of subjects. Also, there is a test/virtual room where students can take online assessment and get results in real time.

Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Buncee, the wonderful educational tool that schools are using for a variety of school activities such as: Project Based Learning, digital storytelling, blended learning, announcements, posters, and more, is a great site/app to use to create beautiful looking Father's Day greetings/cards!!! This is an easy to use tool that will allow users to add clip art, images, backgrounds, animations, and sound to a digital canvas to show Dad how much he mean
s to you, as well as incorporate innovative technology.

I highly recommend checking out Buncee by clicking here!!!
For Buncee for Education click here.

Monday, June 15, 2015

Todo Number Matrix is a free (today) iOS Math app for Prek-1st grade learners. This is a fun app filled w/ 6 different categories of games that contain over 63 learning matrices. Todo focuses on different subjects such as: shapes, fractions, addition/subtraction, logic and more.

I highly recommend checking out Todo Number Matrix by clicking here!!!

Thursday, June 11, 2015

Sharalike is a new service for creating slideshows that I just found out about from Free Technology 4 Teachers. It's a nice free site/app that users of iPhoto/Animoto will feel right at home with. All a person has to do it upload their photos and then select what music they want to add to create the slideshow. They can then share their finished product via social media/link or embed into a site or blog.

3D GameLab is a new site that I just learned about that is ideal for introducing Game Based Learning to the classroom and reminds me a little bit of Answerables. They actually use something called "quest" based learning which has students completing "quests/lessons" and earning digital badges while leveling up. Also, it helps incorporate self paced learning and is a fun way to engage students on any subject.

Wednesday, June 3, 2015

CodeQuest is a super fun iOS app that is currently free designed for teaching young students how to code in CSS or HTML. The way this works is like most games where a user progress from level to level learning the basics of coding. Once they complete the level they earn badges and unlock more of the game. Best of all there is a parent section where they can signup to get emails of detailed progress reports.

Tuesday, June 2, 2015

GoClass the wonderful educational tool for mobile learning and flipping a classroom has just had a major redesign. This new sleeker look makes it easy to conduct lessons via any device and track student progress. These new icons and drop downs is very user friendly, as well as the ability to generate detailed reports to help differentiate instruction.

Biteslide is a wonderful site that I've covered many times before that allows users to create beautiful slidebooks/presentations w/ simple to use drag-n-drop tools. Best of all, it is all done through an educational portal that allows educators to create and manage student account. Educators are using Biteslide for project based learning, flip a lesson, and more.

Recently, they just announced the unveiling of their "Project Kits" that are digital lessons aligned to Common Core Standard.

Here is more info...

Every project helps you teach the key 21st Century skills that your students need for their personal development: critical thinking, communication, collaboration, creativity and digital citizenship.

Each Biteslide project kit includes:

A beautifully designed slidebook to introduce the project to your students

ClassDojo is one of the most popular free "web 2.0" sites on the web for educators. This fantastically simple site to use has teachers all over the world integrating ClassDojo into their classroom to help track and manage student behavior. This is done through a very fun and simple user interface that has educators add a point (for positive or negative behavior) to reinforce appropriate behavior. Also, CD allows educators to generate detailed classroom reports and share them w/ others (educators/parents) via email. Finally, ClassDojo has one of the best resource sharing pages I've seen that allows educators to find out how others are using CD in their class, and print out resources too.

30hands Pro is the new paid iOS app from 30hands Learning. This is a great purchase as it unlocks all the features in the free 30hands app such as: importing video clips, Dropbox/Google Drive integration, and Hi-Res video exporting.

30hands is the amazingly simple to use app w/ drag-n-drop interface that allows users to sync up 30hand online educational community.
photos w/ audio recordings to create stunning presentations. This can be used for digital storytelling, Project Based Learning, or even to "Flip" a lesson. Also, the exporting features allows the video to be saved to the mobile device's camera roll or uploaded to the free

Monday, June 1, 2015

EDpuzzle the excellent and free learning tool for flipping a classroom and adding questions to a video has just released a new update. This update has a new landing page making it easier for students/teachers to sign in, as well as a drag-n-drop interface to add questions to a video. Also, EDpuzzle allows educators to track and monitor student assignments as well generate detailed reports.

Otus is a innovative new mobile learning system for the iPad. This is an excellent free easy to use tool that educators around the world are using to seamlessly integrate technology into their classroom. W/ the free iPad app educators can track assignments, assess students, poll, browse the web, take attendance, and more. It is a complete all-in-one solution for the mobile learning environment. Educators can even "flip" a lesson for at home instructions. Also, the simple to use split-screen allows students to take notes while working on assignments.

Seesaw is a fantastic free iOS app that students can use to create digital portfolios or journals. These journals can contain anything from audio to video, photos, and even drawn upon. Best of all, are the teacher tools that allows educators to create class lists and manage and track all students. Finally, there are a ton of great resources for educators, such as lesson plans, printouts, QR codes for singing up (or class code), parent notifications, and more.

Prodigy is one of the best free sites around for teaching Math by using Game Based Learning. This is an excellent site/game aligned to Common Core Standards for Grades 1st-6th. Teachers everywhere are using Prodigy to assess students through the educational portal that tracks students progress. Also, the game has a unique learning engine which differentiates instruction and helps students w/ problem areas. Being browser based, Prodigy works on any mobile device too.

NameCoach is a wonderful web service that educators are using to learn student's names and pronounce them correctly. This is especially useful w/ commencement/graduation ceremonies on the horizon. The way this works is simple as a teacher creates a name/web page and then has the student's speak their names. The audio gets embedded into a page and a user can access them all on one page at anytime. Also, NameCoach makes it very easy to share recordings and keep track of student's name/email. It's easy, accurate, and 100% safe for schools to use.

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David Kapuler

I have been working w/ technology and education for over 14 years in a school setting. I'm looking for work in a K-12 environment as a Technology Integration/Support Specialist in WI/IL. Contact email - dkapuler@gmail.com
I'm currently looking to get my Mac OS/Repair Certification, as well as a Masters in Technology Integration.
Also, I have a solid background in web design, w/ network/server support.
On a personal note, I';m a proud father of 3 boys and 1 girl, and have been married for 10 years.